Electric vehicles do not create emissions from a tailpipe like conventional vehicles do. The electricity used to fuel electric vehicles is generated at power plants all across the nation. Because each plant that generates electricity can use a different mix of energy sources, the emissions associated with electric vehicle charging can vary significantly depending on where the vehicle's electricity is generated. For more specifics on electric vehicle upstream emissions, see Fact of the Week #737, July 23, 2012.

Electricity is generated from many different sources, with the most prevalent being coal, natural gas, nuclear and hydroelectric. The size of the pie charts on the map below indicates how much electricity is generated within that State and the pie slices show the sources used to generate that electricity. More than half of the electricity is generated by natural gas in seven States – Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Nevada and Rhode Island. In Idaho, Oregon, South Dakota and Washington State, more than half of the electricity is generated by hydroelectric means. Though coal-producing States, such as West Virginia, Kentucky, and Wyoming use mainly coal to produce electricity, more than half of the States (29 States and the District of Columbia) produce less than half of their electricity from coal.

Electricity Generation by Source and State, 2010
Image

 

Supporting Information

Electricity Generation Sources by State, 2010
StateSourceTotalTotal Generation
(Thousand
Megawatt-hours)
CoalPetroleumNatural
Gas
NuclearHydro-
electric
Solar/Wind/
Geothermal
BiomassOther
AK9.2%13.9%55.5%0.0%21.2%0.2%0.1%0.0%100.0%6,759,575
AL41.4%0.1%26.0%24.9%5.7%0.0%1.6%0.2%100.0%152,150,512
AR46.2%0.1%20.4%0.0%24.6%6.0%2.7%0.0%100.0%61,000,184
AZ39.1%0.1%26.6%27.9%5.9%0.1%0.2%0.2%100.0%111,750,957
CA1.0%0.5%53.5%15.8%16.4%9.5%2.9%0.3%100.0%204,125,595
CO68.1%0.0%21.8%0.0%3.1%6.9%0.1%-0.1%100.0%50,720,793
CT7.8%1.2%50.2%1.2%35.2%0.0%2.2%2.2%100.0%33,349,623
DC0.0%100.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%100.0%199,858
DE45.6%1.0%50.9%0.0%0.0%0.0%2.4%0.0%100.0%5,627,645
FL26.1%4.0%56.2%10.4%0.1%0.0%1.9%1.2%100.0%229,095,935
GA53.3%0.5%17.4%24.4%2.4%0.0%2.3%-0.2%100.0%137,576,942
HI14.3%74.6%0.2%0.0%0.6%4.3%2.6%3.4%100.0%10,836,036
IA71.8%0.3%2.3%7.7%1.6%15.9%0.3%0.0%100.0%57,508,720
ID0.7%0.0%14.0%0.0%76.1%4.3%4.2%0.7%100.0%12,024,564
IL46.5%0.1%2.9%47.8%0.1%2.2%0.3%0.1%100.0%201,351,871
IN89.7%0.1%6.9%0.0%0.4%2.3%0.2%0.3%100.0%125,180,738
KS67.8%0.2%4.8%19.9%0.0%7.1%0.1%0.0%100.0%47,923,763
KY92.7%2.3%1.9%0.0%2.6%0.0%0.4%0.0%100.0%98,217,657
LA23.3%3.2%51.4%18.1%1.1%0.0%2.4%0.5%100.0%102,884,941
MA19.4%0.7%59.8%13.8%2.3%0.1%2.9%1.0%100.0%42,804,824
MD54.3%0.7%7.1%32.1%3.8%0.0%1.3%0.6%100.0%43,607,264
ME0.5%1.6%49.2%0.0%22.4%2.9%21.5%1.9%100.0%17,018,659
MI58.8%0.3%11.2%26.6%1.1%0.3%2.2%-0.6%100.0%111,551,372
MN52.3%0.1%8.1%25.1%1.6%8.9%3.4%0.5%100.0%53,670,228
MO81.3%0.1%5.1%9.7%1.7%1.0%0.1%1.0%100.0%92,312,990
MS25.0%0.1%54.4%17.7%0.0%0.0%2.8%0.0%100.0%54,487,261
MT62.4%1.4%0.2%0.0%31.6%3.1%0.3%0.9%100.0%29,791,179
NC55.9%0.2%6.6%31.7%3.7%0.0%1.6%0.3%100.0%128,678,484
ND81.9%0.1%0.1%5.9%0.0%11.8%0.0%0.1%100.0%34,739,542
NE63.8%0.1%1.0%30.2%3.6%1.2%0.2%0.0%100.0%36,630,006
NH13.9%0.3%24.2%49.2%6.7%0.3%5.2%0.3%100.0%22,195,912
NJ9.8%0.4%38.1%49.9%0.0%0.1%1.2%0.6%100.0%65,682,494
NM70.7%0.1%23.5%0.0%0.6%5.1%0.0%0.0%100.0%36,251,543
NV19.9%0.0%67.4%0.0%6.1%0.0%6.5%0.0%100.0%35,146,247
NY9.9%1.5%35.7%30.6%18.6%1.9%1.6%0.2%100.0%136,961,653
OH82.1%1.0%11.0%0.3%5.1%0.0%0.5%0.0%100.0%143,598,337
OK43.6%0.0%3.9%0.0%5.3%47.0%0.5%-0.2%100.0%72,250,733
OR7.5%0.0%28.4%0.0%55.4%7.1%1.5%0.1%100.0%55,126,999
PA48.0%0.2%14.9%33.9%1.0%0.8%1.0%0.1%100.0%229,752,307
RI0.0%0.2%98.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%1.8%0.0%100.0%7,738,719
SC36.2%0.2%10.5%49.9%2.3%0.0%1.8%-0.8%100.0%104,153,132
SD32.8%0.1%1.3%0.0%52.1%13.6%0.0%0.0%100.0%10,049,637
TN53.0%0.3%2.8%33.7%9.9%0.0%1.1%-0.9%100.0%82,348,624
TX36.5%0.2%46.2%10.0%0.3%6.4%0.4%0.1%100.0%411,695,046
UT76.0%0.1%14.5%0.0%1.6%7.4%0.1%0.4%100.0%44,837,624
VA34.9%1.8%23.3%36.4%2.1%0.0%3.0%-1.5%100.0%72,966,456
VT0.0%0.1%0.1%72.2%20.3%0.2%7.1%0.0%100.0%6,619,991
WA8.2%0.0%10.3%8.9%66.0%4.6%1.8%0.1%100.0%103,472,730
WI62.5%1.1%8.5%20.7%3.3%1.7%2.2%0.1%100.0%64,314,068
WV96.7%0.2%0.2%0.0%1.7%1.2%0.0%0.0%100.0%80,788,947
WY89.3%0.1%1.5%0.0%2.1%6.7%0.0%0.1%100.0%48,119,254
Total44.8%0.9%23.8%18.5%7.0%3.5%1.4%0.2%100.0%4,127,648,171

Note: The Energy Information Administration collects information from all electric generating facilities in the U.S. with a capacity of 1 or more megawatts.
Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Electricity Detailed State Data.

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